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added "to see how fast I'm going - eight thousand notes in the time it takes to boil an egg"). However, in 2009 Farmiloe revealed that the shower hose "actually provided the solution for cable routing, some electrical shielding and the ability to mess with the wiring without taking the thing apart", although he did confess that "the egg timer was added last to help
Francis boil a perfect egg for an It Bites breakfast!"
129:. Dunnery has commented "it's a very rhythmic instrument. And you can always see exactly what you're doing, you can work the patterns out. The things you do are totally different from what you can do on a guitar. You can hit two notes together at either end of the fretboard, you can stagger notes, like you're playing a piano, and play 'impossible' scales."
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Dunnery began using the
Tapboard again as a live instrument on his 2009 New Progressives tour, commenting "I don't think I ever fully utilized the true potential of the instrument, so I'm having another go twenty years later. I'm going to break the guitar land speed record and will be performing some
136:
at one end. Both of these initially appeared to have been added as a joke and for decoration, reflecting the eccentric nature of the instrument and
Dunnery's ambivalent relationship with the more ludicrous aspects of rock performance. (Dunnery fostered this impression by joking that the feature was
185:
bassist Balazs
Szendofi (Regina Rostás Quintet, Mindflowers, The Piccolo Inn, The Holdudvar, The Self-Searching System and others). During his time with Mindflower, Szendofi sometimes played a "Szendofi 12-string Grand Tapboard", which he describes as a "custom creation" designed by his own father
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The
Tapboard was never produced commercially, and only one example of the instrument exists. Despite initial intentions, Dunnery did not use it for either recordings and concerts after 1990 as by then he was moving towards simpler composition and playing styles. However, he retained the instrument
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on his lap and "idly tapping" on the fretboard with both hands to create polyphonic chording and fast-attack scales, drawing on his additional skills as a drummer and keyboard player. Dunnery was interested enough in his discovery to continue with his approach. He collaborated with Dave
Farmiloe
81:(chief repair technician at Arbiter Guitars—UK distributors for Fender Guitars at the time) to develop an instrument for the technique. Initial suggestions for the design included "a sphere with strings on", but Farmiloe eventually came up with the less unusual final design.
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to aid control of note articulation. There are twelve strings (with twenty-four machine heads available), all with an extremely low action and "reverse strung". The
Tapboard features two sets of pickups (one of which is apparently taken from a Hohner
157:(although there is no aural evidence of its use on the final release and it is not mentioned in the album credits). Some fans claim that the Tapboard can be heard being used on the song "I'm In Love" from Dunnery's 2001 album
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developed a two-handed tapping technique while recording demos between 1988 and 1989. Despite a reputation for virtuosity, Dunnery lacked interest in the heavy metal tapping styles exemplified by the playing of
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of the
Tapboard classics as well as some new material!" During the tour, he played a version of the 1989 It Bites track "Charley", which he had also re-recorded for his 2009 album
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album in 1989 (on the outro for "Leaving
Without You" and the instrumental "Charley"), and on two single B-sides during the same period ("Having A Good Day" and "Reprise").
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The
Tapboard was used on several It Bites tours from 1989 to 1990, and made an appearance at the It Bites convention in London in 1990. On record it was used on It Bites'
89:
The Tapboard consists of a single piece of mahogany mounted with two standard guitar necks glued flush together, side-by-side. Both necks' fretboards are deeply
186:
Attila Szendofi. The instrument is also sometimes referred to as the "Xu Tap Thing 12". Szendofi’s Tapboard playing can be heard on Mindflowers’
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125:. The playing style involves the use of all ten fingers (and thumbs) in a pianistic style, with the resulting sound being similar to that of a
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The Tapboard is also infamous for featuring a chrome shower hose (which travels from one end of the instrument to the other) with an
199:
297:(3 December 1988). "Tapping a new talent: Julian Colbeck discovers a new guitar technique perfected by It Bites Frank Dunnery".
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117:), the Tapboard is designed to be played on the lap, on a table or on a table-style stand, in much the same position as a
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album (2005). It’s not known whether there is any connection between the Szendofi and Dunnery Tapboards.
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and others: instead, he accidentally invented a new variant on the tapping technique by laying his
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News story re the Tapboard by Stephanie Sobey-Jones on www.francisdunnery.com news page
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and the other by bassist Balazs Szendofi. Unlike other tapping instruments such as the
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album by "Nicky" at www.rateyourmusic.com, 7 June 2002, retrieved 23 September 2008 -
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270:(January 1989). "It Types: Well, what else can you do with both hands at once?".
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and claimed to have begun using it again while recording his 2005 album
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YouTube video of Francis Dunnery playing Reprise on the Tapboard
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As with a number of other tapping instruments (such as the
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50:Francis Dunnery's Tapboard
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340:Review of Mindflowers'
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200:"It Types"
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246:Archived
113:and the
111:harpejji
96:Clavinet
61:It Bites
40:harpejji
20:Tapboard
362:Guitars
342:Nuances
188:Nuances
55:Origins
28:tapping
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85:Design
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